Austin Myers was a teen living in Ohio when he would murder Justin Back and would be sentenced to death for the crime
According to court documents Austin Myers and Justin Back had gone to school together and had been closed friends in their teenage years. Myers had been to the Back home on numerous occasions and believed that a large amount of cash was in the family safe. Myers would recruit Timothy Mosley to help rob the Back residence
During their first trip past the Back residence Austin Myers and Timothy Mosley they realized that Justin Back was at home, the two teens would just drive past the home without stopping. Soon after Myers decided that the best way to get the safe was to murder Justin
The two teen killers would go back to the Back residence armed with a murder kit consisting of: septic enzymes, ammonia, septic tank cleaner, and rubber gloves. The two would go to the home and would be let in by Justin Back. When Justin turned his back on the two teen killers he would be attacked. Timothy Mosley would end up stabbing Justin in the back. Austin Myers would put a wire garrote around Justin Back and pulled while Mosely continued to stab him. Justin would be stabbed over twenty times
Following the murder Austin Myers and Timothy Mosley would ransack the home taking the safe, a gun and numerous other items. The two teen killers would put Back body into the trunk of Mosley vehicle. The two would drop Back body off in a remote area then poured chemicals over it in the hope of destroying evidence. Myers decided he wanted to shoot Justin so would get the stolen gun and shoot the body of Justin twice.
The parents of Justin Back would arrive back at their home and realized that a number of items including their safe and gun were missing. They attempted to call Justin however his phone was still in the home. The Backs would call police to report the robbery and their missing son. They remembered that Austin Myers had recently been at the home in a vehicle that was seen at the home again that day.
Austin Myers would be taken into custody for questioning and soon would admit that he was there when Timothy Mosley stabbed Justin Back to death. Timothy Mosley would soon learn that Austin was blaming him for the murder and would tell officers how Austin had planned the whole thing and had shot Justin Back twice in the woods
Austin Myers and Timothy Mosley would be charged with murder
Timothy Mosley would be convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole
Austin Myers would be convicted and sentenced to death
Austin Myers Current Information
Number A710008
DOB 01/04/1995
Gender Male
Race White
Admission Date 10/17/2014
Institution Ross Correctional Institution
Status INCARCERATED
Aggregate Sentence DEATH
Expected Release Date/Parole Eligibility Date DEATH
Timothy Mosley Current Information
Number A710839
DOB 10/11/1994
Gender Male
Race White
Admission Date 11/14/2014
Institution London Correctional Institution
Status INCARCERATED
Aggregate Sentence Life without Parole
Expected Release Date/Parole Eligibility Date LIFE
Austin Myers Case
An appeals court has ruled a former Clayton man on death row for the slaying of a Warren County man in 2014 can present more evident in his latest challenge to his death penalty sentence.
Austin Myers, now 26, was convicted in October 2014 for the stabbing death of Justin Back in January of that year at his home near Waynesville. The slaying happened during a robbery with another Clayton man, Timothy Mosley, actually killing Back. But investigators said Myers instigated the crime. Myers and Mosley were both 19 years old then
Trial testimony showed that Myers planned the crime, although Mosley ultimately stabbed Back to death during a struggle with Mosley and Myers on the floor of the kitchen after a garrote designed to choke Back to death caught on his chin.
Myers was sentenced to death. In his latest appeal of that sentence, he will be able to present evidence that wasn’t used in previous appeals related to his mental health, according to the latest court ruling.
Myers and Back were friends until the eighth grade, when Myers moved to Clayton and attended Northmont High School. Testimony indicated Myers was the one who decided they should target Back’s home, unaware the family safe contained only $70 at the time.
Myers took two days of preparation, including acquiring septic chemicals he expected would help decompose Back’s body, and shot the body before he and Mosley disposed of it in woods in Preble County
Back was 18 at the time and a 2013 Waynesville High School graduate a week away from entering the U.S. Navy.
Mosley pleaded guilty and was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. He testified against Myers at trial.
The Ohio Supreme Court has upheld Myers’ conviction and sentence previously.
Ruling allows inmate to present more evidence in Warren County death penalty appeal
But changes in the state law led to the 12th District Court of Appeals decision that the trial court erred in dismissing Myers’ petition that claimed his defense failed to present expert testimony during the penalty phase on adolescent brain development in conjunction with his age and mental health issues.
The appeals court returned the death penalty appeal to the trail court for hearing.
Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell said there has been substantial modification to the statue about appeals in last three years, “so in many ways this issue is kind of a matter of first impression on how to deal with these issues since the statute changed.”
He said the scope is very limited to discovery issues relating to youthful brain development and if those specific issues should have been more a part of the mitigation phase.
Fornshell said it is difficult with reviewing cases for anyone to know all the evidence considered by defense counsel and for what reasons.
“Hindsight because the outcome wasn’t what you wanted is easy. You are saying it may have gone a different way. It may not have. It may have been a quicker sentence from the jury. It may have opened up a whole plethora of issues that were even worse for the defendant and the defendant’s chances on appeal,” Fornshell said.
Fornshell said his office is considering appealing the decision to the Supreme Court to provide some clarity.
